Gemara (jan 1, 220 – jan 1, 589)

Description:

The Gemara is a monumental compliation of Jewish legal statements and legends, considered part of the Oral Torah.

Structed as a commentary on the Mishna, the Gemara also draws on other Tannaitic works and on freestanding statements of the Tannaim (called baraitas) as well as statements and stories of the Amoraim and some of the Savoraim. It was traditionally compiled in is present form by the Savoraim.

The Gemara frequently finds justification for statements of Oral Torah in the text of the written Torah and the rest of the Tanakh.

Study of the Gemara for its own sake became central to Jewish learning throughout the Jewish world following its completion and up to the present day, and the legal statements recorded in the Gemara form the basis of halacha.

The Gemara and Mishna taken together are referred to as the Talmud.

There are two written compilations of the Gemara. One is referred to as the Jerusalem Talmud and primarily records the statements of earlier Amoraim living in the Land of Israel. The other is referred to as the Babylonian Talmud and records the statements of both the earlier and later Amoraim as well as the statements of several Savoraim.

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